White criticizes governor for dropout rate during Valley stop

McALLEN — Democratic gubernatorial candidate Bill White criticized Gov. Rick Perry for a high school dropout rate in Texas that White says hampers economic growth.

The gubernatorial hopeful said 30 percent of Texas high school students don’t graduate within four years, limiting the state’s workforce pool. The progress of thousands of other students isn’t even tracked, the former Houston mayor said.

“It tells us that people have slipped through the cracks,” White said, pointing to his plans for programs that encourage dropouts to return to school and provide students a way to pursue education and work. “If we want to hold our schools accountable, then we need to hold the governor accountable.”

White made the comments during a stop in Hidalgo County to meet elected officials on a number of local concerns.

Perry’s campaign staff accused White of distorting facts — saying the percentage of students who earn a diploma or remain in pursuit of one is 90 percent — and charged that his campaign is based on criticism rather than solutions.

Perry signed legislation last year that increases accountability for schools and ensures students are college- and career-ready, spokesman Mark Miner said. White points to statistics but has not passed initiatives to address them.

“A number doesn’t solve a problem,” Miner said. “Solutions solve problems.”

Calculating high school dropout rates in Texas is difficult.

There are several methods to conducting such a tally, with each method producing different results.

A study released last year by Texas A&M University’s Bush School of Government and Public Service projected the dropout rate for the class of 2012 to be 12.2 percent to 22.2 percent — or 40,519 to 73,692 students — using the various measures.

But lowering the high school dropout rate — which is significantly higher in South Texas than in the rest of the state — is critical to the state’s long-term future, said McAllen Mayor Richard Cortez, who met with White to discuss border security, Hidalgo County’s need for an interstate highway, and other issues. Failing to address the state’s high school dropout rate has far-reaching effects, from economic development to crime.

“We know that people who are going to be involved in criminal activity are ones that don’t have skills and a high level of education,” Cortez said. “They feel they don’t have any other solution.”

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The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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Jared Janes covers Hidalgo County government, Edinburg and general assignments for The Monitor. He can be reached at (956) 683-4424.